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Without a Glance
Prologue I have been told the tale many times by my Clanmates, still awed by the battle. I was told that my father, then the deputy of advisory, was one of the best fighters in the Clan. He had rippling muscles, good looks, and most of all, intelligence. Our leader, Icestar, valued that in him. Then came the day where the current deputy of advisory, Ratfur, was killed in a ShadowClan ambush. Icestar appointed my father to replace Ratfur with no second thoughts. But the deputy of patrols, Tigertooth, wasn't too pleased. He could have overpowered Ratfur with no problem, and therefore won himself the leadership of our Clan, but my father was the strongest cat in the Clan. Tigertooth no longer had a guaranteed leadership. So Tigertooth did an Unforgivable Deed. He killed Icestar and asked StarClan to give him the leadership. His request was denied, but he returned to our Clan that very night, boasting of his nine lives and his new leadership of our Clan. He appointed a pretty she-cat, Cherrypelt, to be the new deputy of patrols. He left my father where he was. Cherrypelt had kits not two moons after she was appointed deputy. They were Tigertooth's. As soon as Tigertooth realized that his deputy of patrols was a queen, he appointed another pretty she-cat, Nightclaw, to be deputy of patrols. Nightclaw, like my father, possessed intelligence. Nightclaw had been suspecting for a while before she was appointed that Tigertooth was not actually leader of the Clan. She believed that he had lied and was ready to call him out on it. My father wanted proof. He asked the medicine cat to consult StarClan that very night, and, indeed, Nightclaw was correct: Tigertooth still only had one life. And still, my father advised Nightclaw to wait. He told her to stay safe, and he would guarantee her the same position if he managed to become leader. My father then challenged Tigertooth to a duel, that very day. He said whoever lived deserved to become leader, as they were both the deputies when Iceclaw had died. Tigertooth agreed, confident in his fighting abilities. At this point, the story starts to confuse itself, twist and turn itself into a complicated knot. Some say the fight was long and brutal, and others say it took only heartbeats. But the result is always the same: my father overpowered Tigertooth and killed him. Now, my father is leader. And just last night, I was made the deputy of advisory myself. When my father dies, I must fight for my life. If I win, I become leader. And if I lose, I die. Welcome to my life. Chapter 1 - My Beginnings All my life, I have been told that the old Clans were different. Their social structure was very different. There was no difference between a warrior and a senior warrior, for instance. There was no established difference. Also, there was only one deputy, who served as both adviser to the leader and created patrols. Now it is different. Apprentices are trained for six moons by a senior warrior, and get their warrior name. They are no longer a 'paw, but a 'fur. After six more moons of more training, they gain their senior warrior name. I was told that in the old days, cats received their senior warrior names only after six moons of training. There are two deputies now, too. One is the deputy of patrols. They create patrols and occasionally lead them. They are tuned in to every aspect of Clan life- whom is mating with who, whom is quarreling with who, whom is cheating on who. The other deputy is the deputy of advisory, like myself. They spend much of their time with the leader of the Clan, receiving reports on the Clan from the deputy of patrols and advising the leader on many different things. I have been told it is the hardest job in the entire Clan. My father sympathizes with me, though. He went through it, too, and I have no mother to confide in. She died not soon after I was born of greencough. I have been waiting to be appointed to this position my entire life. I have been trained since I was a small kit, three moons old, in battle tactics, opponent Clan battle tactics, Clan history. No other cat knows as much as I do. I am equipped with the tools to become leader. All except one tool, that is. I am not strong. I have been trained too much in mind skills to focus on strength training as a warrior. Now I sit next to my father, trying not to be jealous of his rippling muscles and his shiny, flaming orange coat. He turns and looks at me. "Blazeheart," he begins, "what should I do about WindClan's invasion?" He has asked this questions many, many times. He is worried beyond belief. The WindClan cats may be lean, but they are powerful and strong, too. "I told you, Sunstar," I respond, trying not to sound annoyed, "meet them halfway, at the river. It's tonight, isn't it? Have Eaglefeather send one out now! They don't have to invade our camp." "But..." "Do it," I urge. To help him along, I call the deputy of patrols. "Eaglefeather!" I can see Eaglefeather, a buff gray tom, begin to move away from a group of cats. He has obviously been gossiping. As he approaches, he is breathless. "You should have been there," he says. His whiskers twitch in excitement. "Wildclaw and Birdtail aren't mates anymore, and Birdtail's trying to claw her across the face." "Stop it," my father snaps. "We don't need fighting among our own cats at so desperate a time. Break up Wildclaw and Birdtail, and while you're at it, form a patrol to meet WindClan's invasion force at the boundary." Eaglefeather's eyes widen. "What, Sunstar? Invasion force?" "Yes, invasion force," Sunstar snaps back. "I've been reminding you of this ever since Creekstar tipped me off at the gathering a quarter-moon ago." Eaglefeather's eyes widen. "Right! The invasion force! I'll get that going, Sunstar!" He races off, back towards the chattering circle of cats. "We're only defending ourselves," Sunstar calls back weakly after his deputy. "There's no use," I tell him. "I'm sure the senior warriors remember, anyway." Sunstar shakes his head and purrs. "I can't believe I'm doing this," he whispers. "You are," I reply, nudging his shoulder. "You'll stay here, correct?" my father asks me briskly. "I want to go," I say. He wrinkles his nose at the thought. "You'll get yourself killed." "No, I won't," I say desperately. Sunstar's jaw sets. I know this means he has made up his mind. "You stay here. We need somebody to defend our camp." I sigh. "Yes, Sunstar." I am not strong. I am just a leader's son. Chapter 2 - Restless I cannot sleep. I can only think of my father's shame in my strength. I think of his annoyed expression at my begging. I have failed him and I will never become leader. I would like to leave camp, but I know my fellow Clan mates may need me. What does my Clan say about me? I squirm in my nest at the thought. "Sleep, Blazeheart," I tell myself. "Think in the morning. You're the deputy of advisory now and you have to be strong." I shut my eyes. And open them again. I almost expect a dream from StarClan, giving me advice on what to do, but I am still in my den. I can still hear some cats gossiping outside. They, unlike me, are strong enough to face an attack. This reassures me. I close my eyes. I don't know how long I sleep, but I wake up when I hear a battle cry. "No," I whisper. I spring awake, and without bothering to shake moss from my coat, rush outside. WindClan have arrived. They have overpowered Eaglefeather's patrols and my father and they are doing what they came to do. Most of the warriors are heavily bleeding, except for a few. One of them comes towards me and jumps on me. I struggle. I claw his soft belly, his muzzle, his flanks. I do anything to defend myself. I cannot remember my warrior training in my time of need and as a result I am being ripped apart. The warrior's claws are bloody. He is a lithe, white tom. He is taking care to keep his pelt clean, apparently, to impress somebody back in his Clan. I feel his claws pierce my belly. "Weak," he says. "You aren't Clan-worthy." I look around helplessly. Our patrols still haven't arrived, which is surprising. Wouldn't they have come by now? When nobody comes to my aid, I lie still and accept my death. My life has been for nothing. I hear a growl. "Don't touch my son!" The white warrior's weight is knocked off of me and I stay where I am. Hisses and yowls of pain sound from the fight right beside me. I look up in time to see my father staring after a white tom, who is just disappearing inside the bramble tunnel. "Sunstar!" I cry in relief. "Get me Leafdapple," I choke. My father's ginger pelt, speckled with blood, disappears from beside me. I can feel myself dying in a pool of my own blood. I see our medicine cat's tortoiseshell pelt walking straight towards me. Leafdapple is coming to heal. Sunstar is trying to take command elsewhere in the camp. "Leafdapple," I breathe. "Thank you so much!" Leafdapple only works. I feel something being applied to the wound on my belly. I feel instant relief. "Get up," she commands. "I need you to fall asleep in my den." I grunt as she pulls me up and drags me towards her den. I can barely feel anything. She pushes me into a nest and shoves a poppyseed down my throat. "Sleep," she commands me. I shut my eyes.